Hi, i have been given the responsibility of making this years fireworks (very
excited haha) i have everything i need except some red phosphorus - does anybody know where i could aquire some?
many thanks,
mark.
[edit by mod - Title change and move to appropriate forum.]
[Edited on 3-2-2025 by j_sum1]Deathunter88 - 2-2-2025 at 15:23
If you need red phosphorus for making fireworks, you're doing something wrong. Stop before you kill or maim yourself. I am not discouraging you from
making fireworks, but there is a proper way to go about it. Check out skylighter.com for some projects, and if you really want to get into it, join
fireworking.comJhiggins94 - 2-2-2025 at 17:00
Hi, thank you for your advice/concern (i truely appreciate it) but i have been in charge of making fireworks every year and have always kept to the
same process/ reagents, also this year i plzn to use some for a variety of metalurgy experiments ( plus in my experience its handy to have a small
amount of RP in stock, im sure others will agree )Sir_Gawain - 2-2-2025 at 17:54
What fireworks require red phosphorus? As for metallurgy, it's much easier to obtain a phosphorus-rich master alloy. Also, adding phosphorus to molten
metal will not get you an alloy, it will get you a fireball.Jhiggins94 - 2-2-2025 at 18:30
although as i said i appreciate your concern, i have used it to make small smoke producing pyrotecnics since i was 18 (now 30) as well as making my
own matches occasionly, although most would see homemade matches as pointless haha ive always enjoyed the process, as well as creating my own
boxes/sticks - im a nerd - please dont judge haha
not only that but i have come across several synthesis over the years that have been unavailable to me over the years due to not being adequetly
equipt, so have started to compile a basic set of reagents, taking my chemistry prepartion slightly more seriously, should i need it in the
future,itll be there! j_sum1 - 2-2-2025 at 19:03
although as i said i appreciate your concern, i have used it to make small smoke producing pyrotecnics <snip>
Good to hear that you have some experience and that you are not flying blind. There are ways of getting red phosphorus spectacularly wrong. (I speak
from experience here.)
That said, there are still genuine concerns. The smoke produced by phosphorus is P2O5 and therefore hazardous to breathe in. I can think of other
ways that this could go wrong too. There are other components used to produce smoke more safely.
As Deathhunter eloquently put it, if you are using red P for fireworks, then you are doing it wrong. You may well have stumbled across a mixture that
has not caused harm so far. At least part of that is luck. I strongly recommend you look up the references that Deathhunter gave. You will improve
your practice, gain experience, gain knowledge, and likely get better results.
Home-made matches sounds pretty cool. With caution of course. Metallurgy sounds really dumb.
If you need some supply, my first suggestion would be onyxmet. Most reputable suppliers (onyxmet included) would be interested in knowing that you
are not going to do something stupid with your phosphorus. Be prepared to give an account of yourself and fill out the proper paperwork.
[moderator hat off]
Red Phosphorus
MadHatter - 3-2-2025 at 07:52
Any amount of red phosphorus sold in the United States is reported to the DEA by
law. Depending on where you buy it you could get a knock on your door by the feds.Mateo_swe - 13-3-2025 at 05:50
When it comes to red phosphorus where you are located makes big difference.
In US red P is on the DEA watch list but in Europe it´s quite easy to get.
Or at least where quite easy to get some years ago.
Im not familiar with resent development on red P avaliablility though and there have been some big changes in the EU thanks to a combination of stupid
politicians who feels that chemicals should not be anything legal for private persons and stupid terrorists making bombs thus worsening the situation
a great deal.
5 to 10 years ago something you could order a kilo red P in Europe and get it delivered to your door without any issues.
Have you asked any of the sellers on this site in the "reagents" section?Precipitates - 13-3-2025 at 06:41
Etsy or match striker paper*
Albeit with striker paper you will need to isolate the red-P yourself, and it's likely to be impure - useful for most purposes however. MrDoctor - 13-3-2025 at 15:57
since you seem to be in the business, literally, of making fireworks commercially, you shouldnt have any trouble just buying it and declaring its use
openly, law enforcement is more suspicious when some precursor to drugs or explosives goes to a trailer park or ill maintained private residence than
a commercial pyrotechnics workshop.
If you want to know a hole for non-account individuals to still buy it online, try school-science supply online stores that sell educational material,
theres one near me that still has a listing for 500g red phosphorous active from the old days, you still need an EUD but unlike sigma, they dont also
require an up to date cavity search and 15 years of tax history.
Manufacturing phosphorous in massive quantities like you require is simply not possible for even a skilled chemist, its simply too expensive and
requires too much specialized equipment (i believe vacuum + arc furnace is mainly how its done these days). Its a problem that countless kewl chemists
have been battling against for years.
However, since you seem to be comfortable around explosives maybe there is one method you can try. I wont go into details but, you can probably
produce it semi-cheaply from bulk materials if you have the utilities and skill to distill the vapor from one of the thermite-type reductions of
phosphate. This of course means you need to be able to handle massive plumes of deadly toxic AND explosive phosphorous smoke heavily contaminated with
phosphine and other stuff, but, like you said, you are making phosphorous smoke bombs, so im just assuming you, as a skilled commercial operator, have
the ability to handle that.
For anyone else though trying to distill the smoke from pounds of phosphate-thermite would just be asinine, its a reaction usually only attempted in
the gram scale in a test tube which invariably is destroyed in the process for maybe some milligrams of yellow phosphorous residue.
zed - 12-8-2025 at 18:44
I appreciate that many members are hesitant to confess their country of origin, but it makes a huge difference in conversations such as this one.
In much of the world, obtaining Red Phosphorus is no big deal. In the USA, obtaining Red Phosphorus IS a big deal.
The concern is about its being used in conjunction with Iodine, to produce Hydrogen Iodide in situ, while being refluxed with Ephedrine. Wham, Bam,
Bob's your Uncle; Methamphetamine.
Now domestic Meth production is way down in the USA, and the former outlaw speed production has now shifted to Mexico. Where the Cartels buy Indian
Ephedrine in multi-ton lots, convert it to Meth utilizing the crudest methods, and thereafter smuggle the product into the USA.
So, Red Phosphorus is not the domestic problem that it used to be, but the prohibition persists.
Hard to get!
Varungh - 11-11-2025 at 04:42
If you can, you can reduce P2O5 using a metal reducing agent like Zn or Al.
However I would just scrape matchesRadiums Lab - 11-11-2025 at 08:10
(very
excited haha) i have everything i need except some red phosphorus - does anybody know where i could aquire some?